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How To Write Travel Articles For Fun and Profit
A Few Words Before We Begin
So, do you think you have what it takes to write a travel article? I can see people shaking their heads right now, especially those who don’t travel, right? WRONG!
I’ll tell you a secret if you promise not to tell anyone who reads those travel magazines: many of the authors of those travel articles have never been to the places that they write about. I know…I know…shocking, right?
No, not shocking…just great writing! If an article writer is so good that they can make you believe they have spent time at faraway places even though they have never left their home, then that is one good article writer.
If you have read me at all in the past then you have read my articles on niche writing and the Ten Second Rule. Allow me to give you a brief summary of both.
Niche writing, in my humble opinion, is crucial in this highly-competitive world of writing. Find a niche and then become an expert in that niche. In the case of travel articles, obviously many people write these, but how many have found an interesting sub-category? We’ll call it a specialty niche. If you can find that, and this article has suggestions, then you are on the road to being published in a travel magazine.
The second point is the Ten Second Rule, which states that you have about ten seconds to gain the attention of your reader and then you will lose them if they do not find something interesting in your article in that time span. Ten seconds! You need a hook! You need to find a way to make that first ten seconds so interesting that your readers can’t wait to see what follows. That is what this article is all about, ten hooks that will make your travel article jump off the page and attack the readers.
Are you ready to rock-n-roll? Let’s do it!
The Top Ten Travel Magazines
- Top 10 Travel Magazines
Here you can find AllYouCanRead.com's Editor's Choice Top 10 Travel Magazines. All Magazines are free to read online. If you prefer to read paper version for the most of our Top 10 Travel Magazines we provide convenient online magazine subscription l
Do you think you might try travel writing?
WEEKEND GETAWAYS
One interesting travel niche you might try is short vacations within a couple hours of a city. Highlight relaxing activities or novelty locations, and you could do this for every major city in the world. Call it “The Weekend Getaway Series,” like Weekend Getaways in New York City, or Weekend Getaways in Topeka, Kansas. That way not only would they appeal to editors of national magazines but also to editors of local magazines as well.
FAMILY TRAVEL
What to do on the next family vacation? This niche should focus as much on the children as the adults, and you could highlight amusement parks, local fairs, parks, etc. Call it Great Family Travel Vacations. Again, you could make a sub-niche, like Great Family Travel Vacations In Los Angeles, or Great Family Travel Vacations In London.
CULINARY TRAVEL
Vacationers love to eat, so why not do a series of articles on local cuisine? You could talk about what the locals eat, give a history of the food, talk about the farmer’s markets in an area and recommend some restaurants to visit. Again, you could do this for every major city in the world without ever leaving your writing studio.
TRAVEL MEMOIR
This is my favorite niche when writing about travel. Through my personal experience I write a memoir about a favorite place of mine. I wrote an article about Mt. Rainier in Washington State called “My Love Affair With Mt. Rainier, and it was extremely well-received. Without ever mentioning a particular activity, I managed to make Mt. Rainier sound like the dream location that it is, and people responded.
Where have you visited in the past that left you with fond memories? Make those fond memories into an article and sell it with a flourish.
DESTINATION GUIDES
This is the most common travel article. In these you point out the interesting places to see in a particular city or region. Think travel guidebook and you will be right on with this niche. Now, to put your own personal stamp on it, try to find places that are not covered by the many articles out there. Look for the unusual…in fact, that could be your niche. “Unusual Sites To See in Manilla.”
SPECIAL INTEREST TRAVEL GUIDES
Here is the ultimate special niche travel guide. Great places to see for rock hunters. Great places to see for quilt collectors, or great fishing spots in the Rockies. Yes, you are limiting the number of readers by doing this, but you are also cornering the market in one particular area of writing. If there are 50,000 readers interested in great hamburger joints, and you have the only article written about them, then you have a very useful article on your hands.
OUTDOOR ADVENTURE
There are literally millions out there who are looking for great sites to visit that offer outdoor recreation suggestions. Whether it be fishing, hunting or white-water rafting, there are people who want to know about it.
Pick one aspect of outdoor activities and then become an expert on it. Great flyfishing sites in Sweden…great flyfishing spots in Turkey. Pick a niche and then pound it for all it is worth.
SPECIAL BEST OF ARTICLES
We are seeing more and more of these articles, but that should not discourage you. Ten Great Museums in Fort Worth, Texas. Five Great Restaurants in Buffalo, New York. Again, you are narrowing your readership, but if you consider how many people live in Buffalo you still have a large readership.
ROMANTIC GETAWAYS
This is a bit different from the weekend getaways. This one will concentrate solely on romance. Where would you like to take your lover for a special weekend? What appeals to you when you are thinking of romance? Once you have answered those questions then start researching similar activities and places in other cities.
SPECIAL HOLIDAY TRAVEL SITES
Concentrate on special holidays and then use the holiday to write about different locales. Great Christmas Activities in Denver. Great 4th of July Activities in Philadelphia. There are so many holidays and so many cities and regions to write about. Again, the special niche is the key. Once you have your niche then you can become the only writer concentrating on it. Build your expertise and the readers will come.
Thoughts on travel writing
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Now It Is Time to Begin
You would be amazed by the number of travel writers who do not travel. Why should they? The internet provides all the information they need without ever leaving home. What is required is determination and the ability to use words to portray expertise. Tell yourself you are a travel writer and you will become a travel writer. Let your readers take the trips while you take the payments from regional and local magazines.
Before I forget, pick up a copy of the Writer's Market. In it you will find a complete listing of U.S. magazines and their submission guidelines.
Hopefully these ideas will be enough to set you on the road to a lucrative career as a travel writer. Remember that you control your future as a writer. Open up your imagination and soar as you were meant to do.
2013 William D. Holland (aka billybuc)
Comments
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Sounds good, Kristen. Have a wonderful weekend.
Thanks Billy. I'll check it out tomorrow after church.
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Kristen, I just happen to have written an article about it...check this out....https://hubpages.com/literature/Stay-At-Home-and-W...
Billy, if you have any tips on how to do that, please feel free to share. I would love to do that.
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Thank you Kristen. Let the internet be your car. I have no doubt you could write a great travel article without ever leaving your home.
This is so useful, Billy. I would love to be a travel writer someday. Sadly, i don't have a car though.
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Alun, thank you for your thoughts on this, and your kind words. You are quite accurate when you say that travel articles written by someone who hasn't visited the site lacks the feel for the atmosphere, but then so many online writers are not concerned about the feel but only about the keywords.
Useful guide Bill. I like some of the niche travel writing ideas, particularly the special interest suggestions such as culinary trips, and the weekend getaways. (A similar, even more extreme short-visit idea goes along the lines of 'what can I see in a city whilst on an airport stopover of one day?' I've read a few of these on HubPages, and they are always interesting if one has a chance to get away from an airport for a few hours whilst waiting for a transfer flight).
Intriguing to hear that travel articles are often written by people who haven't even visited the site! I guess that could be done by talented writers if the article was about the history or major sights of a city or country, but what may then be lacking is a feel for the atmosphere of the place, or the little quirky insights into particular localities or customs?
I write quite a few travel hubs Bill, but when I travel, I have no clear idea in advance what hubs I will subsequently write. It all depends on how each day develops, what interesting and unusual experiences I have, or what photos I manage to get - sometimes I don't write about a venue such as a famous building, simply because I haven't been able to take any good photos, whereas I'll write an article about a much less celebrated site, because I have the photos or local specialist knowledge to accompany it.
Good advice in your article Bill - travel writing is a wonderful thing to be able to do - what better than to visit a really interesting or beautiful place, and then get paid some money for doing so! :) Alun
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LOL...go for it, kalinin!
I wanna be that nerd!! :-P
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Actually, kalinin, for anyone who has ghostwritten articles for websites, this is quite normal. Most of the travel articles you see online are written by writing nerds sitting in their little apartments. :)
Great hub, as always! It'd be kinda weird to write about a place you've never been to as if you have, but I guess that's what the imagination is for :-) Voted up
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Jo, I think you folks in Europe have a great advantage when it comes to travel articles...there are so many countries close by. Of course, you are on an island. LOL I hope you give this a try. You are a very good writer and you could do it well.
Blessings to you, Jo, and thank you!
Great tips, I've been thinking about this, but never thought of writing from the point of view of the virtual traveller .....but there is no reason why this shouldn't work. Thanks for this useful info.
My best to you.
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Doc, it is nice to see you my friend. Thank you for the kind words and the visit. I hope you are well.
A brilliant guide, Sir Bill, you have nicely summarised the various themes for aspiring travel writers - great tips, well structured, really useful! up/awesome.
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Bill, when you find the time this is a genre that was made with you in mind. Find a sub-niche and then do Italy proud my friend. :)
Hi Bill. I had never considered the fact that many travel writers don't visit the places they write about. Guess I've been living under a rock somewhere. I could never do that, I don't think I'd feel right about trying to tell someone about a place if I had not visited it myself. I'm not sure I could relay in words the passion I had for a place if I didn't actually go there.
I learned a lot from this hub. I have always considered travel and Italy as niches, but I think you are right in that it goes deeper than that. There are so many sub-niches to even Italy that one could concentrate on. You've given me some good ideas here, the travel food niche, family travel, etc...
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drbj, I am blessed by a very loyal group of followers....and you are one of them. Thank you so much....life is good my friend.
Yes, Bill, you are doing your thing - and doing it very well. Just take another look at all the comments that back up my assertion. More power to ya, my friend.
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Walter, thank you my friend. I'm just doing my thing, whatever it might be. :)
Glimmer, Billybuc is right. Did you notice that the number of comments and thank you notes that he has received is longer than his hub? He's found his niche in teaching people how to write better and he's been pounding ever since.
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Thanks again Glimmer! As long as we can find a unique niche and keep pounding it, we should find success.
I'm loving your tips hubs that you have done lately. This one is no exception. Makes me want to start writing travel hubs and you are right about the topics. Whenever I read a travel magazine, they always have these sections. Great hub!
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LOL....Walter, I hope I amuse you as much as you amuse me. Thank you for the laugh my friend and have a great week in Malaysia.
Billybuc is always the good host. If he had not said in his profile that he was a teacher, I would have thought that he was once a Guest Relations Officer of an international hotel chain! Ooophhhhs, did he say he changed jobs 25 times? That must be it!!!
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Thank you Lurana! I always appreciate you stopping by my friend. Have a great Sunday!
Really great ideas!! Never thought of this niche (with the sub-niches) but it sounds fun. Excellent writing advice here. Thanks as always, Lurana
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Walter, enough out of you. LOL You are misleading my followers. :)
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Vinaya, you are a very good writer and I'm sure these ideas will help you...find a new niche....a new way to attract others, and you will stand alone in the travel genre.
Vinaya Ghimire, don't come out with fake travel articles, okay? LOL.
Billy,
I have written and published travel articles. Thanks for sharing interesting tips. I will love to try some of your ideas.
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Poon the confusion never seems to end, does it? LOL Thank buddy!
It's getting very esoteric. I'm still wondering whether "It was meant to be" is a complete sentence or an incomplete sentence. Meant to be what? It sounds so tao: "Tao is." I haven't figured out yet what "Tao is" means.
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Career, it was, indeed, meant to be. Have a great weekend and I look forward to your new slant on Palm Springs.
Billy, I'm glad this hub popped up again. I'm taking a family vacation to Palm Springs this weekend, so I think I'll write about it! Your hub showed up at the most opportune time. It was meant to be!
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Marcy, you make an excellent point....different eyes than before. We each bring a unique viewpoint to anything that we write about. That uniqueness is what we should be tapping into.
Thanks for a great comment.
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Suzie, you already do such a great job in your current niche...I have no doubt that you would do well with a traveling niche as well. Thanks for dropping by and I hope you have a great weekend.
Thanks for sharing your expertise and these great tips, Billy - you are always so generous with your time and talent! Travel writing is such a fun way to share adventures and good times. And every time you visit a new place, you see it with different eyes than before.
Hi Bill,
Ah . . . one of my passions, travel and travel writing. I as you know am a demon for travel and love it. I want to do more on my own experiences but equally I know what you mean about writing about things you may not have ever seen or experienced and being able to convey you did experience it by doing research and having good writing skills. I plan on doing more travel writing when in Italy permanently as I think it would be an interesting niche not widely covered (southern Italy). Thanks so much for doing this as it is a great resource for ideas and thoughts that we may not have given much time to before. There are a number of great travel writers here and I love reading about new and interesting places all over the world, including Mt Rainier!!
Great insight as always my friend, keep them coming!! votes and shares heading your way, have a great weekend :-)
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Thank you Mike and thanks for sharing this on Twitter.
Enjoyed reading this hub as well as the rest of your hubs concerned with writing techniques. Many thanks!
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Lady, it's only logical when you think about it. :) I didn't know until I did a little research on the genre. Good luck when you give it a go. I look forward to reading it.
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Thank you one2get2no....good luck and have a great day.
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Elias, good for you, and good luck in your endeavors my friend. Thank you!
I was surprised to learn that travel writers don't always visit the places that they write about. It proves that a good writer can write about anything. I plan to try my hand at doing just such a hub in the near future. Very informative. Voted up and shared.
Nice hub Billy....some interesting ideas.
Great hub and very useful writing tips, billybuc! I'm especially interested in travel writing and although I'm already following most of your advice, I found the article quite helpful.
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Thank you Alicia! I enjoy writing these hubs knowing they help other writers.
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Thank you vkwok!
Thank you for yet another useful hub about writing, Bill. The advice in all your hubs is very helpful. You are creating a wonderful collection of articles for writers!
Great hub and advice.
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Nell, it's a well-kept secret my friend. LOL Now it's out in the open and available for all of us writers. Good luck with those travel articles, and thank you!
Hi billy, I never thought about whether the writers actually go there, I just presumed they did! well I never! fascinating look at how to be a travel writer, I may just give it a go! thanks!
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Pearl, what a bonus....you've actually been to the places. LOL That puts you in the top five percent of travel writers right out of the gate.
You are very welcome my friend and thank you for your kind words and continued support.
Billy, you know you just amaze me with all your great ideas! Who knew you didn't have to actually travel to write travel articles--DUH! And what a great assortment of categories you have given us. This is one I am definitely bookmarking. With all the great places in my neck of the woods, and I've actually been to a lot of them, I could absolutely do this! Thanks for yet another great niche opportunity my friend ; ) Pearl
Voted Way Up as always, by the way
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I'm a patient man, Walter. :)
Billybuc, I don't know yet when it will happen, so I can't tell you at the moment.
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Walter, if it's a secret, how will we know when it happens? I'm so confused. LOL
Billybuc, I initially planned to go to Florida to visit a friend. But after you inspired me to write a novel, I may be heading for Rome next year... top secret project, LOL.
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Thank you Vellur and it's nice to see you again.
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Walter, if you ever showed up in Tacoma I would not know if it were real or not. LOL If it is real we can certainly go Dutch. Thank you my friend.
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Eddy, you are a fine writer and I have no doubt you could do this if you set your mind to it. Best of luck to you my dear friend, and thank you.
love,
billy
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Rachel, I love the comment about the empty passport. Go for it! I'm sure you will do a fine job.
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Rajan, it is my pleasure. With the internet anything is possible for a writer. :) Thank you my friend.
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Walter, I think you were correct the first time. :)
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Anna, those types of hubs are very interesting and I'll bet you would be good at it. Thank you as always for the visit.
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Thank you DDE...perhaps a travel hub about Croatia is in the plans???
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Even so, Martin, I appreciate you reading this hub.
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Mr.veg, I look forward to your next travel hub. :) Thanks for the visit.
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Ruby, if I were interested in such things I know I could do this...but I'm not. :) Have a great day and thank you.
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Walter, I'll be expecting a hub about Timbuktu from you soon. :)
Great ideas, thank you for sharing with us.
"When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it had happened or not; but my faculties are decaying now and soon I shall be so I cannot remember any but the things that never happened. It is sad to go to pieces like this but we all have to do it." -- Mark Twain
Billybuc, you are hastening my decline into pieces... since reading this hub, I am now confused whether the things that I remember actually did happen, LOL. But this hub is hitting jackpot, judging by the number of comments that it has garnered. I hope you can afford to buy me a cola, if I ever go to Tacoma (assuming you've retired there), LOL. (I know Americans like to say, "Let's go Dutch".)
A great hub Billy and as you know I love to explore everywhere and then to publish a hub on the place often including poems.
I now will add your brainwave to my hubs and maybe to edit and publish on another site also.Your pointers are simple but as is so often we need to be pushed or rather nudged in that direction before we twig on.
Thank you over and over again Billy my very dear friend.
Lots of love
Eddy.
Bill, I would love to write more on travel and not let my empty passport get in the way. Thanks for the ideas about niche writing for travel. Vote up!
Brilliant ideas. The internet is a sea of information that just needs to be churned and it will spout the much needed info. Thanks very much, Sir, for such valuable tips.
Voted up and awesome, my friend!
Anna Haven, according to me, Billybic is one big conspirator.... ooophhhhs, I mean inspirator, LOL.
Another brilliant hub from yourself. Very interesting that the writers don't actually go to the places a lot of the time!
Travel memoirs would be the one for me. I can't help myself from going into my personal experience even when I am supposedly writing a factual article.
Thankyou :)
An interesting and informative hub on writing about our travels you said it all here for the most special reasons
Thank you for this. I'm affraid travel is no longer in my cards.
Lovely Advice Bill !! I will surely try them out :)
Well, i guess if you're a good enough writer you can write about anything or anyplace and make it look and sound interesting. Great tips Bill. I'm not too sure i would want to do that but different strokes for different folks. I see absolutely nothing wrong with it...Cheers
Kasman, no way to validate yourself cos there's no way anyone can know whether you have Photoshop. By the way, I've just returned from Timbuktu, one of the last places on Earth to retain its old world charm, a quaint li'l town in the West African nation of Mali, some 20 km north of the River Niger on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert.... let me check whether it has an airport.
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Maria, you can carry away any old time you want on my site. Thank you for your comment. As long as a writer does not say they have been to a place I don't see it as lying. Maybe stretching the truth a bit. LOL
blessings to you my friend,
bill
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Thanks Deb! There is no reason why we shouldn't cash in on the traveling craze. We may not travel but we can sure write well. :)
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Lizzy, a great reference and right on. Logically it makes sense, but few really think about it. :) Thanks Dunedin...always a pleasure.
I had a part time in a vacation program and they had so many tricks. They wanted me to lie about places I never visited. I didn't lie. When the clients asked me how was I offering what I haven't seen, the reply was: I cannot go now that is why I am working to be able to travel. I made them know the importance that enjoying the time they had meant, and not mine. Lol, I am not a seller and I do not consider myself a writer. I love to sell and I love to write, as many other things I do without being trained or expertize.
Ohhh Bill I am sorry I got carry away chatting here.
I really wanted to say that this is a very good share. I am following your blog now. Thanks!
I love to write about travel, particularly my own, but I must admit I've done a few articles about places I've never been. These are great tips, as usual.
Bill! This is so cool. I never thought that there were travel writers who wrote about places they've never been. Genius! It's like the George Costanza of journalism.
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Donnah, if you have been to those places then you are way beyond many writers who write about travel. I say go for it!
Great ideas. I have done lots of traveling, but it has been years since I have been to some of the places that I might write about. I suppose I shouldn't hold back since some writers are writing about places they have never been. Summer is coming, so hopefully I will have time to devote to writing again. Thanks for the inspiration.
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I hope to get back there some day. First I have to make a ton of money from writing. :) I'm not holding my breath for that day to come. LOL
I still haven't been to Boston, been to several places in New England, but not that. I don't know why. I need to go, but I need more incentive I suppose.
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Too funny, Kas!
Lol @walter, thank God I have pictures of myself at these places. How else would I validate myself. And no, my ipad doesn't have photoshop! Hilarious :)
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Walter, every travel hub from now on by anyone will be treated with great suspicion.....and I love it!
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Kas, I hope this is helpful for you in the future, buddy. Favorite places? I've only traveled the U.S....love Yellowstone and Vermont....Boston is my favorite city. :) Thanks my friend!
Kasman, you would have saved yourself a fortune, if Billybuc had written this hub earlier. From now onwards, whether you actually travel or not, every travel hub will be treated with great suspicion, LOL.
Hey Billy, aren't you the funny insightful one. I'm just pondering how I want to tell my travels from around the world and here you go giving me a great hub on how to express myself! Birds of a feather man. I loved this hub as it definitely appealed to something I enjoy more than most things in life, traveling. Any particular favorite place of yours besides the mountain brother? Have a great one, I'm voting up and sharing.
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